


Underneath the Sakura Tree

by BabyPinkPuppy



Series: The Chronicles of Lamia and Kappa [1]
Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (TV 2012), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Gen, Human AU, Leorai heavy, Leorai is my otp, Miwa is not Karai, Not high school trope, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Other Characters - Freeform, Shredder is a jackass, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-30
Updated: 2020-11-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:33:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25520650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BabyPinkPuppy/pseuds/BabyPinkPuppy
Summary: Many years ago, Tang Shen had met two boys; Hamato Yoshi and Hamato Saki. Both were infatuated with her kindness, her beauty, and how gentle she was. And overtime, Shen had grown to care for the two of them. But she could only love one as her true love.It wasn't easy, at first. But she did not come to regret her decision. Questioned it? Maybe, but never regret.The two brothers, like all brothers, developed a rivalry in everything, including a competition on who could best whom in ninjitsu. But the rivalry grew bitter when both fell for Tang Shen.And when Saki learned the truth of his heritage, added with Yoshi and Shen's marriage and first-born, a bridge was burned between them. And forever did Saki consume himself in his rage, fuelling a fire he had inadvertently caused in his family's old home.The two brothers fought, and Shen, shielding her beloved from a killing blow, took the fatal hit.She survived, unbeknownst to Saki, and Yoshi mourned little Miwa and the two fled to New York where they could safely hide from Saki's ire and vengeance.Little they knew, their lives would forever change from that day forth, with four new additions.
Relationships: Donatello & Leonardo & Michelangelo & Raphael (TMNT), Donatello/April O'Neil (TMNT), Karai/Leonardo (TMNT), Splinter/Tang Shen
Series: The Chronicles of Lamia and Kappa [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2008480
Comments: 26
Kudos: 59





	1. And the Journey Awaits

**Author's Note:**

> Couldn't help myself. Inspiration struck and I'm in a mood to write, lmao.
> 
> So things here are going to be a little different from the original series. Most likely I'm not going to go back through every episode and rewrite it as that, but I might make references. I'm freeballing as I go here, so I hope you guys enjoy this.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "It's like Master Splinter would say; we must accept the hands that the universe has dealt us." —Mikey, Within the Woods
> 
> In which, Tang Shen wrestles with the choice between two men and the downfall of Saki's mind, and the tragic aftermath of his goal for revenge.

Many years ago, when Shen's father visited an old friend, she had met Hamato Yuuta's two sons, Yoshi and Saki.

For them, it was infatuation at first sight. And at the time, Shen was not too surprised. If you were a woman who was young, fit, and beautiful, men wanted you. While it felt stifling and tiresome, Shen had taken their infatuation in good nature. They were kind and sweet, and respected the boundaries she drew, which wasn't a lot to ask for, but with men who had come from traditional upbringings, it felt like it was.

From that day forth, she learned a good lesson; brothers fought. It was odd, she'd thought. They competed in everything that was ninjutsu, or who could eat or run the fastest. At the time, she found it amusing, content to watch them bicker and throw harmless jabs at one another.

It was what brothers did, her father told her. They fought, they teased one another, and then they would smile at each other that spoke no harm done.

But the more she watched, the more she saw.

In the fountains in her old family home, Shen's friend, Mei Pei Chi, had fondly teased that she was very intuitive and insightful. She said, "You look into a man's eyes and you see a light or darkness that others don't."

At the time, Shen had laughed it off, splashing some water at her dear friend.

While the two competed for her attention, Shen sought to learn more about these two interesting boys.

Yoshi, she learned, was steadfast and loyal. His dark eyes held a wisdom beyond his years, and dedicated to his art. His smile was kind, holding a warmth Shen was drawn to, an intelligence she was fascinated in, and had the vocal chords of a blade when he lost his temper.

Saki...

His eyes held a darkness that lay beneath the warm smile he gave her. Initially, she saw that he was bold and determined, and never hesitated in his clean, cut throat strikes. At times, she felt something ominous radiate from his sharp words and petulant scowl; a feeling that left her with goosebumps.

Shen wasn't sure how to feel about that.

It wasn't until a midnight spar that she saw tension in their rivalry. Watching them exchange blows had become more violent, harsher than what she'd seen beforehand. Like a battle between enemies in an action movie.

Specifically, it was always Saki who provoked Yoshi into losing his temper. Spitting insults, insulting in how he was weak compared to Saki himself, and often times the two grew angrier with each other, especially where Shen was concerned. Mild taunts soon turned hostile.

In the time she had gotten to know them, she had grown to care for the two rambunctious brothers. She admired Yoshi's dedication to the clan, and Saki's devotion to their art. But the rivalry soon grew violent and a bridge began to separate the two brothers. But then the bridge formed a wall between them, cutting them off from one another. And soon, their relationship grew strained, as if bursting at the seams and ready to explode.

Both men wanted her to choose which she loved, which one she found the better choice.

So, with a solemn look in her eyes, Shen chose.

It wasn't exactly a hard choice, but she was not looking forward to the fallout that was sure to arise between the two brothers. Saki, in particular, demanded for her choice. And Shen could only hope that the two would eventually reconcile from their courting.

In the end, she could only love one man to be her lover.

While she admired Saki's will of strength, he was not a man she could see herself marrying. She could see that he cared very deeply for her, but she did not appreciate with the way he often spoke of her. As if she was a trophy he and Yoshi were playing tug-of-war with. Like she was a thing to gloat about.

Saki was a good man, but he had more to learn about how life worked than just besting his older brother. And while she was disappointed he had refused to accept her decision, she was grateful for Yoshi's presence. He was protective, kind, and respected her more than any man who'd sought for affections ever had. He never demanded anything of her.

* * *

For a while, Shen was content. She was married to a man she loved, and she had a beautiful daughter named Miwa, named after her late mother-in-law.

However, the clan, living in Japan—it wasn't where or how she wanted to raise her beloved Miwa. Not with how there was a bias for gender or how oppressive it was for a woman to grow up in such a stifling environment. For years Shen had to endure men doting on her and charming her for attention. She did not want Miwa to have a similar experience.

Sadly, she knew her Yoshi would not leave this life. _The way of the ninja,_ he would say.

"Ninjas have no place in this world," Shen had argued back, cradling little Miwa in her arms. She looked away, eyes solemn but firm. "This is no life for Miwa. If she ever follows your path."

Ignoring his calls, Shen had turned her back and walked away into the woods. The moon shining bright, she followed the familiar path of the sakura trees. When she was a little girl, they had given her peace and solace. And she admired the way the pale pink petals would fall gracefully from the branches, landing delicately on the ground.

When her mother was alive, she would sit Shen on her lap, overlooking the mass of pink showering the woods, and tell her what they represented.

 _Renewal of life,_ Shen had learned. _Of hope and beauty._

And Shen had come here every night when she felt distressed, particularly when Saki grew more hostile towards Yoshi for her hand. This was her favorite place, after all. It was where she married her Yoshi. They walked with Miwa through this very trail. So she sat on an old bench, Miwa asleep in her arms, and watched the petals fall with a soft smile.

What she didn't know was that this would be the last time she would see this place.

* * *

Smiling at a giggling Miwa in amusement, Shen did not notice the smoke right away. Not until she caught a whiff of burning wood and the sounds of fire cracking in the distance.

"Yoshi!" she cried, eyes widening when she saw the dojo, their home, aflame. Several pillars of wood and debris fell in flames, the space around the old home glowing a terrifying orange.

Rushing towards the building, she jumped back when another piece of wood fell from the roof, cutting her off from the front. Up close now, she could hear Yoshi and Saki's grunts and blades ringing.

Frantically, she ran around the side doors, catching a glimpse of the fight. Furrowing her brows, Shen found that Saki proudly wore Foot Clan garb, with metal gauntlets that bore blades.

Her knowledge of the Foot Clan was limited; Yoshi had only said they were an old rival clan that his father had taken down years ago when he slained their leader, Oroku Kaji.

"Saki," she heard her husband say, "this place is burning down!"

"Then we shall both perish!"

Throughout it all, Miwa wailed, tears streaming down her chubby cheeks. Shen's attempts to calm her were futile, when her own heart was beating out of its chest.

She set Miwa underneath a chair, pushing through the door. Her eyes widened in alarm when she saw Saki in the air, an arm raised to strike the killing blow.

Yoshi held an injured arm, kneeling down, but Shen could see that even with his mastery in ninjutsu, he would not be able to evade so easily.

So Shen could only do what she was capable of; sliding in front of her beloved, she braced herself for the pain.

And did the pain come. With the fire surrounding her, Shen could only register Yoshi's anguished scream and Saki calling her name, and Miwa's cries faded away as her whole world became black.

When she would awake, she would learn the devastating truth that her daughter, her little baby, was lost to them forever. Burned by Saki's vengeance, ripped away from them by the flames that swallowed her whole, leaving only a bone that the firefighters confirmed belonged to an infant.

In the span of three hours, their world had turned upside down, wrenching them from their home, where they could only lick their wounds and hold each other as they cried for their baby.

"She's _gone,_ Yoshi," Shen wailed, burying her face in his chest. "Our little baby is gone."

Strong arms wrapped around her, Yoshi closed his eyes, a tear leaving. "I know, Shen," he said, voice heavy with grief. "I know."

Well, at least they had each other.

* * *

In present time, Shen and Yoshi recuperate at an old friend's house. It was miles away from their old home in Japan, and Saki would not be able to find them for the time being.

Hissing, Shen gingerly rubs her back, where Oroku Saki had inflicted these horrid scars on her back.

Mei Pei Chi, her old friend, winces in sympathy. "How bad?" she asks.

"It is manageable," Shen says, picking her words carefully as she takes a long sip of her tea. "The doctors said that if it had been my front, it would have been more fatal."

Her friends nods in understanding, or what Shen interprets as understanding. After all, Mei had the luxury of carrying no burdens of the way of the ninja. No marriage, no kids. Shen was almost jealous, but she would never trade Yoshi and Miwa for anything in the world. Even the life of a bachelorette.

At the thought of her daughter, Shen looks away, rapidly blinking, but it catches Mei's attention anyways.

"Oh, Shen." Walking around the counter, Mei opens her arms and engulfs her into a hug, rubbing her injured back. "I am so sorry for what has happened. You and Yoshi did not deserve any of that."

"No apologies necessary, my friend," Shen says, but her voice is hoarse from all her screaming, sobbing at how cruel fate was. She pulls away from her friend's arms, stubbornly wiping away her tears. "You were not the one who ambushed my husband in the middle of the night."

"Still," Mei insists, placing a hand on her shoulder. "My condolences. And as long as you and Yoshi are here, let me know if there is anything you need."

Shen nods, swallowing the last of her tea. It has grown cold in the hour Mei had brewed it, and it only leaves a bitter taste in her mouth. But Shen welcomes the feeling for a fleeting moment. It's better than anguish and devastation at losing her only child.

She lets Mei lead the conversation. What her friend is saying, Shen has no idea, but she nods along like she's listening regardless. Her head aches, her back stings fiercely, and she feels a swell of anxiety for every minute Yoshi has not arrived yet from the remains of the dojo. Shen had wanted to come, but her husband insisted that with Saki still lurking, it was far too risky, even with firefighters and policemen surrounding the area.

"I am lost, Mei," Shen says eventually, face falling in hopelessness. "After everything, where can we go from here? How are we going to leave our home behind? The dojo...Yoshi is far too dedicated to the clan. I fear he will not leave it."

Mei only frowns, covering her hand with her own, squeezing it in what Shen assumes is comfort.

"And even if I can convince him to flee Japan, what will we do for a living? Neither of us can uproot our lives from here," she continues, all her worries spilling out like the blood on her back did days ago, when her whole world changed forever. "I do not know if Yoshi can speak English very well, and even if he did, where we would go to first? How are we going to search for a home in America? If we take our savings and assets from here and transfer them to an American bank, what happens if Saki is tracking our every move—?"

"Let me stop you right there," Mei cuts in, setting down her coffee mug. "Shen, I understand your concerns, but panicking right now will do you no good other than give you a migraine. Which is the last thing you need right now after everything that happened."

Shen winces, but concedes with a nod as she wraps her hands around her handleless mug.

"As for where you will go, why not New York City?" Mei says. "After all, it's always been your dream to live there someday. Why not now?"

"I suppose you have a point," Shen mutters, managing a small, faint, but genuine smile.

Mei returns the smile with her own. "Don't I always?" she humors, before becoming more solemn again. "And if you are worried about Saki discovering where you are, New York is fairly large. It would take him a long time to find either of you. And this is assuming he knows you and Yoshi are alive. You said he struck you in the back, correct? And Yoshi told me that some debris cut him off from you two, so it's very possible he may believe you two to be dead, especially if he somehow discovered the firefighters found Miwa's remains."

Shen flinches at the mention of Miwa, looking away. Mei gives her an apologetic wince, squeezing her hand. "It is unlikely Saki could discover where you two are," she says softly. "And if you are worried about money, let me help."

At that, Shen sharply looks up, shaking her head once. "I cannot take your money, Mei," she says immediately.

"Too bad, I'm giving it to you," Mei shrugs. "And not _all_ of my money. My parents and brother left me a hefty sum to keep me comfortable until I'm in my nineties. You can have the money from my brother's account."

She sighs when Shen still looks on the fence about it, patting her hand. "I want to help you, Shen. But I cannot help you if you don't _let_ me."

Sucking in her lower lip, Shen's expression becomes contemplative. She didn't feel comfortable taking money her friend inherited from a family member. It felt wrong using her friend's wealth like that, but she and Yoshi had very little options. And they couldn't have Saki catch wind of them fleeing to America. And Shen _had_ always dreamed of travelling to America and living in New York, or as some would call it, The Big Apple.

If not for herself and Yoshi, then for little Miwa.

Sighing in defeat, she closes her eyes and nods. "Very well, then," she says at last, before giving Mei a smile of gratitude. "Thank you, my friend. I only wish to repay you someday."

"Mail me pizza from an American establishment," Mei humors, and it lightens the mood as the two women share a laugh.

But soon, the laughter dies down, and so does the light mood. "There is one issue left," she says, lifting her eyes to Mei's. "Yoshi and I have yet to find a way to travel to America."

"I know some friends of mine that are travelling on boat," Mei says, shrugging one shoulder. "One is coming down tomorrow night. You and Yoshi could go to New York by there."

"True, and hopefully we will be able to apply for citizenship," Shen muses, looking down in thought. The look in her eyes soon turns sad, and she shakes her head. "But what about Yoshi? You know he is devoted to the Hamato Clan."

"Well, according to Yoshi, the Hamato Clan seems to be no more after they chose Saki's side," Mei sighs heavily, a running a hand through her long braid. "Perhaps he doesn't have to give up ninjutsu completely. After all, even with my money, you two will still need to find jobs in America."

"Are you suggesting my husband applies to be a karate teacher?" Shen deadpans, raising a brow.

"Oh, wouldn't _that_ be something?" Mei snickers, hiding a smile behind the rim of her cup. "I mean he should open a dojo. I hear young boys in America like to fight. Why not learn how to do it properly?"

Shen looks thoughtful, shrugging. "It doesn't sound _so_ bad," she says, almost begrudgingly. "I only hope he does not go as far as turning it into a full fledged clan."

"I hardly doubt Yoshi will be keen on training strangers to become part of a ninja clan." Mei swallows the last of her own cup, setting it aside and taking Shen's to put in the sink. "At least not fully the way he and the others were trained. You know how Americans are. Far too fragile to handle such knowledge."

Snorting, Shen smiles sardonically, tapping her fingers on the counter. "It won't be easy," she says, mostly to herself.

"Nothing ever is, Shen," Mei says.

* * *

"New York City?" As predicted, Yoshi is more wary on the idea, if the frown and doubt dripping from his voice was indication enough.

While Mei is organizing the money situation for them, they sit in a spare bedroom, packing their clothes and most valuables that Yoshi managed to salvage from the remains of the house.

Shen sits in the futon beside him, a teddy bear wrapped in a colorful blanket held closely to her chest. Nodding, she says with a small smile, "I've always wanted to go there as a little girl. I know that the circumstances are...troubling, but I believe we can have a fresh start in the city. I could look for work and you could open your own dojo."

Yoshi opens his mouth, before shutting it with an almost audible click. While it wasn't necessarily ideal for him, they had limited options. And he wasn't completely sure whether or not Saki believed them to be dead. And, to his disappointment, it wasn't a bad idea, even if he couldn't exactly continue his clan's legacy.

"Well," he says, casting a glance at the teddy bear, "it is ideal for our situation. I only wished that it could have been three of us..."

"I know," Shen whispers, placing a gentle hand on top of his own. "I want her to be with us, and it hurts, and focusing on her death and blaming ourselves will not bring her back. Nothing will. And it is a lesson we have to accept, but we must endure together. For Miwa."

"For Miwa," Yoshi agrees, smiling a little.

The death of their beloved daughter hadn't really hit him until he had taken Shen to safety. It washed over him like a river, wild, out of control, and powerful. He'd screamed his grief, cried with what little breath he had, and endured the pain of losing his first-born. It hurt, it was always going to hurt, but it was like his father had taught him; focus on the friends you have in the present.

He was devastated that she was no longer with them, but he was grateful that Shen was still here, and they could heal together and pick up the pieces Saki's vengeance had left.

"We shall leave tonight," Yoshi announces, rising from the futon. "I believe we have enough to survive in an inexpensive hotel for a couple of days before we decide where to live."

"With the money Mei is transferring to us, I say we have enough to cover for ten years," Shen chuckles, stroking the head of the teddy bear with great fondness. "We could live in an apartment. Not a fancy one, but one in good condition that will suit our needs for the time being. Do you think you can open a dojo?"

"I believe so," Yoshi nods. "But to be safe I would have to go by a different name."

"What about Splinter?"

Shen smiles oh-so innocently when her husband sends her a flat, unamused look; it was a nickname she and Mei had come up with when they were children. They often teased Yoshi on how scrawny and lanky he appeared, though they were ultimately impressed when they'd saw the skills he possessed in the art of ninjutsu. At first glance, he seemed harmless, until he wiped the floor with another boy or even Saki many times that he could inflict a good amount of harm. And judging from his opponents expression, it was safe to assume his punches hurt.

"Splinter it is," Yoshi says with an eye roll, but Shen can see the smile he is clearly fighting. "And what will you do for a living, my love?"

At that, Shen hums in thought, cocking her head to the side. "A nurse," she says after a moment. "That way, we can have easy access to medical supplies should I ever have to sneak some away."

"As long as you return it," Yoshi says, which Shen chuckles fondly.

"Yes, yes, of course," she says, though there is a sly mischievous spark in her eyes that spoke only of trouble.

Yoshi could only shake his head with such fondness for this woman, so strong in the face of losing their child and home in not even a week. If Saki didn't find them, she would surely be the death of him.

Later that night, they travel down to the docks, their bags strapped to their backs, and once everything is loaded and ready, they take off.

Sitting in a private space, Yoshi slings a strong arm around Shen and pulls her close. She rests her head on his shoulder, letting out a soft sigh as she watches the bright lights faded.

She almost feel guilty; this had been her home for so long, that it feels like she's cutting off limb leaving it. Her friends live there, her old home was there, and the sakura trees...

"Do you remember where we had our first kiss?" she asks quietly, eyes still staring into the tiny speck of light that was Japan.

Yoshi knits his brows together in confusion, but nods. "I believe it was underneath the sakura trees you like so much," he says fondly. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason," she says with a small smile. "I'm just going to miss them."

"Well I have a seed for one that I found in the house," he says. "We can always plant it somewhere."

Her smile widens, eyes lighting up. "I would love that, Yoshi," she says.

Yoshi smiles warmly, kissing her head softly.

The two lean against each other in silence. Yes, they lost their little Miwa, but they would preserve her memory in New York, where they would spend the rest of their lives together, heal together from the wounds Saki inflicted, and cherish the memory of their homeland and daughter.

And as the speck of light fades away completely and leaves only darkness, Shen can only see the shimmer of the moon that shines down on them.

And ahead of the moon, awaits the beginning of their new lives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ngl, this was pretty hard to write, but I'm glad I finally finished it. Second chapter to this is already finished, and the third one is being written right now. First few chapters are gonna be focused on Shen, Splinter, and their four kids, so Karai won't come in until later. Or will she? 😏
> 
> Secondly, I wanna give a special shout out to both Crowdog and Chandrakantya since both are the main reasons why my love for the Leorai ship has intensified. If you haven't read their fics, I highly recommend you do.


	2. Quad What Now?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tang Shen and Hamato Yoshi settle into their news lives in America. They mourn the loss of their daughter and organize a shrine dedicated to her and her memory.
> 
> Months later, Shen falls ill and Yoshi panics, and rushes her down to the hospital.
> 
> Only to receive such shocking news.
> 
> "Quadruplets?"

The transition from Tokyo to New York City is fairly easy. Easier than Yoshi had assumed. While Yoshi isn't accustomed to living in a big city with herds of people and colorful billboards, Shen has spent her fair share of time in the big city of Tokyo. The brightly lit buildings and myriad of colors are very similar, and she knows her way to weave quite easily through a crowd. For Yoshi, it's a little harder since he mostly spent time in his family home and a small village, where the streets weren't as crowded and there were far less people to move around. But with his ninja training, he finds his way through the heavy crowds and thinks of it as leaping through trees in a dense forest.

The apartment they rented was decent. Two bedrooms. One bathroom. And the rent was affordable enough for Shen's income.

As for Yoshi's dojo, he had managed to buy an old building that used to be a restaurant in the early seventies, before it was shut down by a grumpy health inspector. The place was big enough for the proper equipment, and he could use the extra space to keep refreshments like water bottles or energy drinks cool for his students. Inspired by his love of renaissance art, he decided to call it The Renaissance Clan, under his old nickname, Splinter.

For Shen, her work at a local hospital wasn't so bad. It was good money, and she loved helping with the small, sick children. Predictably, the little boys were drawn to her, as several of the nurses had good naturedly teased she had a caring warmth to her that reminded children of a beautiful summer day. That and the fact she was easy on the eyes.

Though they were content with their lives, their time was soured by the harsh reality of their situation. Betrayed by somebody they'd thought was a friend, a brother, and trusted man. Only for said friend to storm into their home, with a lust for vengeance, and burned their home to the ground, along with their precious daughter. Even if the weeks had seemed to flown by, both felt the days weighed down on them until the silence suffocated them. Some days they would sleep in bed and stay awake in the dead of the night. Other days, Shen found Yoshi guzzling down a bottle of red wine, while she would listlessly browse through channels on the t.v.

She never dares to go through the family shows and movies.

It hurts, more than both care to admit, but it does. The loss of their child, their entire _world_ —gone, in a cloud of fire that consumed her small body. It was a deep pain that could not be quelled by even alcohol or movies. And both harbored guilt over little Miwa's death; Yoshi had blamed himself for not stopping the fight before it could've gotten this far, Shen blamed herself for carelessly leaving Miwa underneath the chair that was eventually melted by the flames.

It aches, more than anything.

But, as Yoshi says, they must deal with the hands that the universe has dealt them.

So now, they dedicate their time to preserving her memory. Yoshi had built a shrine not too long ago, with candles that he sometimes lit up, a photograph of Miwa covered in pink petals and a wide smile on her face, and her favorite toy; a teddy bear.

They visit the shrine for seventy five percent of the time, lighting up the candles and smiling sadly and wistfully. It was a miracle the stuffed bear had not been touched by the vengeful flames of Saki's ire, and for that they were grateful.

Currently, the two walk in the streets of the city, Shen admiring the sights with rapt attention. Yoshi glances at her and sees she has a soft smile on her lips, fascination in her eyes as she looks around the buildings and billboards. Thankfully, the sidewalk isn't crowded with too many people, so both don't have to sidestep several businessmen and frantic New Yorkers. They occasionally stop to look at some of the candle shops Shen was so fond of, and she bought a lavender scented one with a decorative label.

"Do you like it, Yoshi?" she asks, lifting it to his nose for him to catch a whiff of it. He tilts his nose down and sniffs once.

"It's very nice," he says, Shen pulling the candle away from his nose and closing it with the lid. "It reminds me a little of my father's room."

"Your father used to light candles in his bedroom?" Shen asks with amusement.

Yoshi chuckles a little, smiling fondly at the memory. "Not lavender, but I believe it might've been vanilla incense," he says. "He told me that the smell helped bring a calm warmth during meditation. Personally, I preferred butterscotch."

Shen laughs at that, turning her head back to see an antique shop. Her interest piqued, she reads the pretty gold letters that spell the shop's name 'Second Time Around', and goes inside, followed by a curious Yoshi.

The bell rings merrily when she comes inside, looking around. There were shelves of antiques like vases and old decorative tea cup sets, which Yoshi sets his eyes on and strides closer to them. While he browses through the tea sets, Shen looks around and admires a few of the artifacts stacked on the shelves. Further in, she sees an auburn haired woman on a step ladder, large cardboard boxes opened beside her, surrounded in bubble wrap and plastic.

"Hello?" she calls to the woman, tilting her head to the side.

"Huh?" the woman turns halfway and her brow raise in surprise when she sees Shen. "Oh, hi. I'll be right with you in a moment."

"It's alright," Shen says, watching as the woman neatly stacks some colorful rocks beside each other. "Do you need some help."

The woman chuckles and steps down from the ladder, wiping some dust on her jeans. "No, that's fine. They're hardly heavy," she says. "What can I do for you?"

"My husband and I are relatively new to the city," Shen explains, eyeing a few boxes of silverware. "We were exploring earlier and stumbled upon your shop. What kinds of antiques do you sell?"

"The standard," the woman says. "A couple of old silverware and some tea sets, a few old rocks that look like crystals, stuff like that. Are you two looking for anything specific?"

"No," Shen shakes her head, setting down the silverware. "I was simply curious about this place. Although I would like to buy some antiques for our apartment. It's a bit...desolate and I would not invite guests into it."

"Ah," the woman nods and puts her hands on her hips, biting her bottom lip. "Well if you want your apartment to look more lively, I can direct you to some old paintings and figurines. I think I have something you may like." Her voice trails off in the end, as if she's thinking of something, and Shen follows after her.

"So where you from?" the redhead asks as she rifles through a shelf filled with figurines and miniature statues, crouched down.

"Japan," Shen said, hands folded in front of her. "My husband grew up in Ōsaka and I grew up in Fukuoka."

"Oh, that's so cool, I always wanted to see Japan," she says with a smile, pulling out two sculptures from the back; a large rat with four baby turtles swimming in palm, with the rat sitting underneath a large tree, and the other was a turtle and snake entwined together. "I'm Aggie O'Neil, by the way."

"Tang Shen. Those are very interesting figurines," Shen observes, looking at them with interest. She crouches down and takes the one with the rat and turtles. "I don't believe I've ever seen something like this before."

"It was sculpted by some artist around the eighties," Aggie says, the turtle and snake figurine still in her hands. "Peter Eastman, I think. He was known for his animal-like sculptures. The Rat and Turtles were his most famous back then. Not a whole lot of them anymore, though. Heard he passed a couple years back."

Tang Shen nods and lets the information sink, eyes glued to the figurine. It was bigger than her hands but it wasn't heavy as it looked. The rat had dark fur with lighter colored stripes around his snout and a pink nose, with crimson brown eyes similar to Yoshi's. The turtles were of different shades of green with distinct features. Oddly enough, the smaller one with lighter skin had a light dusting of freckles.

"I like it," she hums with a small smile. She looks up and tilts her head at the turtle-snake. "What's this one?"

"Uh, the Black Warrior, I believe," Aggie says with a thoughtful frown, brows knitting together in confusion. "Though I don't know why. This looks nothing like the name says."

"That's because it isn't supposed to be a warrior exactly," Tang Shen remarks, eyes lighting up with recognition. "In Chinese culture, it is known as a constellation of a turtle entwined with a snake, called Xuanwu. In Japanese culture, it is known as Genbu, it is the protector of the city on the north and a guardian spirit for Kyoto. I learned about this from my grandparents when I was a little girl."

"Ah," Aggie nods in understanding, a smile pulling at her lips. "That's actually pretty cool. My manufacturer got this from a small town in China. Says it's popular in East Asian mythology."

"Tang Shen?" a new voice cuts, and the two turn to find Yoshi with a basket filled with some vases, tea sets, and a couple of bowls with beautiful patterns. "Are you ready to leave?"

Tang Shen nods and rises, addressing Aggie first. "I'll take both. I think they'd be wonderful additions to our living room."

"I'll ring you up at the counter. This way," she jerks head in the direction to the cashier, and the two follow her and set down their items. She scans them before putting it in a bag, wrapping the figurines in bubble wrap and plastic and securing it with tape. "That'll be $20.55, please."

Yoshi nods and pulls out a crisp twenty and one dollar bill, handing to Aggie. Once she gives them their five cents, she says, "Have a nice day, and welcome to New York."

Shen gives her thanks and the two walk out the store as a few more customers trickle in.

* * *

"I did not know you were so interested in the tale of Genbu, my love," Yoshi says as Shen unwraps the plastic and bubble wrap, grabbing a damp towel to clean some dust off the sculptures.

"My grandfather loved tales of spirits and constellations when he was a little boy," Shen tells him, smiling softly. "Whenever we visited him, he used to tell me the stories of Xuanwu, one of the four symbols. And the tale of kappa."

"Kappa?" Yoshi frowns.

"Turtle yokai, I believe," she explains, looking up from the Xuanwu. "They warned a little girl that her village was in danger, and they loved cucumbers. I ever wonder if these spirits are real."

Yoshi makes a face that conveys his doubt, and Shen playfully frowns at him. "Don't be so dismissive, my love," she teases. "You've always been so disbelieving of the supernatural."

"Because there is no proof they exist, Shen," Yoshi chuckles, lifting his handleless mug to his lips and taking a small sip of his tea. "You are always open to the possibilities of the unexplained."

"Perhaps," Shen says with a small shrug of her shoulders. One of the few things the two disagree on was the existence of the supernatural; Shen's mind has always been open to the possibilities, while Yoshi remained skeptical. It brought up an interesting debate between the two, and it was what brought them closer together years ago.

"What's this?" Yoshi asks when she unwraps the sculpture with the rat and the turtles.

"The woman in the store told me it was made by an artist many years ago," Shen explains, patting the top of the sculpted tree the rat sat underneath. "I think it looks like a guardian rat of some kind, watching over these young four turtles. Look at small they are."

"It is certainly...odd," Yoshi observes as he stares at it, head cocked. "I don't believe I have ever seen rats and turtles together."

"Perhaps not," Shen says fondly. "But I like it. Gives me hope that the incompatible and opposites can watch over one another."

Just then, a wave of sudden nausea sweeps over her, catching Shen by surprise. Frowning, her hand ghosts over her stomach, before the feeling returns full force and she's bolting into the bathroom. Alarmed, Yoshi rushes after her and sees her hunching over the toilet, her body wracking with heaves and the sound of her vomiting sounds painful.

"Shen?"

"I'm alright," she wretches out, before regurgitating her breakfast and lunch into the toilet, her sleek black hair falling in front of her face. "I think I ate some bad chicken earlier at work."

"Was it undercooked?" Yoshi asks, pulling her hair away from her face as she pukes.

"I have no idea. I got it from some fast food restaurant."

"Ah. So it was undercooked."

"Shut up, Yoshi."

* * *

Later, she learns, she was a week late.

That's the first sign of trouble.

Soon enough, she finds herself quickly becoming nauseous at random times of the day.

Second sign.

Lastly, when she tells this to a coworker, they ask her if she might be pregnant.

And really, she should have listened.

"So you're tired more than usual," Mei says when Tang Shen calls her from a burner phone. "Your breasts are tender, and you feel nauseous all the time. Hmmm...yep, you are most definitely pregnant."

"I haven't even taken a test yet," Shen sighs, rubbing her eyes with her forefinger. Her hair is a mess and her skin is paler, and her chest is sore and she feels ten seconds away from vomiting stomach acid. "I don't know if I'm pregnant for sure."

"Well those are pretty big signs, Shen," Mei says. "What's the harm in taking a test?"

Shen sucks in her lower lip, frowning deeply as the conflict wages a war inside her head. "...it could be positive," she meekly admits.

"You make it sound like a bad thing."

"It's not," she says quickly. "But...I don't know if Yoshi or I are ready for another child. We're still picking the pieces after Miwa..."

She trails off with a sigh, averting her gaze even though she was on the phone. Her eyes rest of the Xuanwu figurine, the snake and tortoise staring into each other's eyes. "It's been hard, since Miwa died."

"I know," Mei says, her tone softer. "I can't imagine what that's like. But...did you and Yoshi talk about having another child?"

"No," Shen admits. "It's been eight months since she passed. It was far too soon to be talking about having another child. And..." She closes her eyes guiltily. "I don't want to replace Miwa."

There's silence for a minute, and Shen stews over in the guilt that, if she is pregnant, it would feel like she was replacing her first born. A dark part of her hoped she would have a miscarriage so she wouldn't be burdened by the guilt of abortion or making another Miwa copy.

"Shen," Mei begins, her tone gentle yet firm. "If you are pregnant, you're not replacing Miwa. You and Yoshi didn't conceive to replace her, did you?"

"No."

"Exactly." There's a short pause, before; "It may feel like you're replacing her, but it's not like this child has to be Miwa. You can raise them to have their own identity."

For a little while, Shen concedes to her friend's logic and asks her about her day. While Mei is discussing learning potions and curses with some odd woman she met in the woods, Shen worries her bottom as she faintly lifts a hand to her stomach. And that's when the tears coming spilling down, like water bursting through a dam that floods the river.

"I'm so scared, Mei," she sobs, face twisting like she had been shot with a bullet. "Yoshi had intended to teach Miwa the ways of the ninja. But ninjutsu is one of the reasons we had to flee here. The rival clans between the Hamato and the Foot is the reason why Saki sought for vengeance. I was just the nail in the coffin that cemented his hatred of Yoshi! I can't lose this child to this lifestyle!"

Because, really, it had been the history of the rival clans that urged Saki to attack Yoshi, inadvertently cause a fire in his rage, accidentally taking Miwa with them as her little baby was consumed by flames and vengeance. If the two didn't know a thing about ninjutsu, then maybe there was a chance that Saki would have accepted Shen's choice and learn to live with it. And the more she thought about this potential baby growing in her body, the more she dreaded telling Yoshi. What if he decided to train this child the way Yuuta had trained Yoshi and Saki? She could _not_ lose this child to this dying way of life.

"What if this child chooses to follow his path?"

"Shen..."

Shen shakes her head, tears burning a trail down her pale cheeks, letting out a hiccup that sounded like a sob.

For the rest of the night, while Yoshi is at work, Shen curls into her bed, swallows herself into the blankets, and allows sleep to take her to another plane of existence.

For the sake of this child, she hopes the stick with test negative.

* * *

"Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Hamato," the doctor, a brown eyed woman with sunshine hair, says. "You are indeed pregnant. And it looks like you're going to be the proud parents of quadruplets."

"Quadruplets?" Shen sits up straighter, brows pinching together. Surprise crossed Yoshi's eyes, mouth opening in a silent 'oh.'

"Four heartbeats," the doctor confirms, smiling at them. "Quadruplets aren't very common as twins or triplets, but I can assure you it is no different than giving birth to one child. If you're worried about the pain or complications, we have some sedatives to help ease the pain."

While the doctor speaks, Shen's mind spirals, and her shoulders suddenly shake violent. Burying her hands in her face, she cries quietly for a few minutes, while Yoshi rubs her back soothingly, mindful of the scars she was still recovering from.

_Four babies._

The doctor must look confused, rightfully so since this was supposed to be joyful news, so Yoshi explains to her, "We recently lost our infant in a fire several months ago."

"Oh," the doctor says while Shen sniffles pitifully, wiping tears away. "I'm so sorry. My condolences."

"Thank you," Shen hears Yoshi say, voice solemn and quiet, pasting on a polite smile. Shortly after Shen's little breakdown, the doctor quietly leaves with the promise of some papers and a due date, Yoshi continues rubbing her back.

"Four children?" Shen rasps, voice hoarse and weak, as if she had spent years with her vocal chord dormant. "Four children..."

"The dojo is pulling in enough funds to get us by," Yoshi assures. "We can find a bigger place to live in when they are born."

And they had the money Mei gave them, though neither touched the money in the account. Now it looks like they may have to in the near future. And Yoshi's dojo _was_ gaining popularity, even more so than some other dojo chain started up by some martial artist with that ridiculous cartoon and cereal brand. Plus Shen still made good money from nursing.

But the money was the least of her concerns.

"Are you going to train them?" she asks suddenly, eyes boring into his.

Yoshi's brow raise in surprise, looking almost confused by the question. "What?"

"Are you going to train them to be ninjas?" Shen clarifies, eyes hardening. "Please. Don't lie to me, Yoshi. Do not dance around this topic. It has been plaguing my mind for weeks before you rushed me down here."

He doesn't answer at first, instead he sucks in his top lip and averts his eyes. She can see the wheels spinning in his head, the conflict raging behind those dark eyes, and her suspicions are confirmed.

"It's crossed my mind, yes," Yoshi admits at last, carefully wording his sentences as to not start this familiar fight. The same argument that led Shen to storm off and opening Saki's opportunity to attack her beloved. "After my father died, he urged me to rebuild the Hamato Clan and continue its honor. It is not something I can leave behind, my love."

Shen looks away, closing her eyes, as if in pain. It was an honest answer, one that she was grateful for; but it was an answer she'd been dreading ever since her talk with Mei. She understood, somewhat at least. Tearing yourself away from such a traditional upbringing can prove to be challenging, and while she admired his dedication to his family's clan, she sometimes wished he could leave it all behind him and move on from that old life. But it felt selfish of her to ask him to give it up, considering he may have wished to teach his ways to his own son or daughter.

"I only ask of one thing," Shen says when she finds her voice. She opens her eyes and stares straight into his, pleading and firm. "While I am not happy you want to continue the way of the ninja, I ask that if you decide to train these four children, that you don't push them so hard like your father did with you and Saki, and that you warn them about how far a sibling rivalry can go."

Yoshi nods, giving her that familiar, warm smile before he leans down and kisses the crown of her head. He rests his hand on her stomach, where she puts her own hand over his. "You have my word."

She smiles, and while she's still nervous about what the future holds, she's grateful she has her Yoshi by her side.

"So four babies," she muses.

Yoshi grins, chuckling. "We're going to need a bigger house."

She laughs, and for that moment, she's not too worried.

Bigger indeed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit, I did not expect this kind of reception when I posted the first chapter. Eleven kudos and 5 bookmarks? Like, wtf? That's amazing!
> 
> The last part of this chapter was a challenge for me, since I debated whether or not to bring up Shen's issue with Yoshi continuing the legacy of the Hamato Clan and training their future kids. And, uh, I don't have much experience in losing a kid to a fire since I was never pregnant, so it was kinda hard to put myself into those shoes and try to find a way for Shen to react to the news of being pregnant again. 
> 
> Lastly, the third chapter is still being written, mostly because I can't decide whether or not to include the scene of the human turtles being born or just timeskipping. I'm worried it might disrupt the flow or pacing of the story. Hopefully I will get it done by this Wednesday or Thursday.
> 
> Also, lemme know what y'all thought of this chapter.
> 
> Love, Addicted to Leorai.


	3. Moving Forth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened." —Dr. Seuss

It's not easy at first, coming to full terms on her pregnancy.

As the months build forth, the more her belly grows, all she's reminded of is the memory of Miwa. How she kicked in the womb, how often Shen would crave mochi, cupcakes, and bacon. Once she ate all three in a huge bowl and received odd looks from onlookers.

Back then, she had shoveled her food while Mei flipped them off.

But this pregnancy feels different. More so emotionally than physical. The morning sickness is hell, just like the first time. The cravings are enticing, just like the first time.

But emotionally? Mentally?

It was never like the first time.

Well, maybe that's not _completely_ true; Saki had made it increasingly difficult for her to tolerate when he had become more hostile towards the happy couple. But that had been more of an annoyance than outright sorrow and guilt.

No, unlike the first pregnancy, this one takes an emotional toll on Tang Shen; it becomes harder for her to wake up. There are days where sits on the couch and lifelessly stares at the blank television. She tries. Tries so hard to keep her spirits up. Tells herself that she would be welcoming four babies into this world, who Shen will shower with affection and tummy tickles.

But, the darker, more cynical part of her thinks: they will never grow up with a big sister to guide them.

In her mind, she'd imagined raising little Miwa with her beloved Yoshi, and soon produce another child for her to grow up with, go through trials with. Learn how to form a strong, unbreakable bond that can never be separated. But, because of Saki, the Shredder, it will never happen.

Simply because he could not take no for an answer.

 _ **"URGH!"**_ Shen growls through gritted teeth, throwing her cold lasagna to the wall. The red sauce, much to her ire, splatters on the wall like blood, and the plastic plate slowly slides off, leaving a trail of marinara sauce in its wake.

Arms crossed, Shen huffs, glaring hotly at her lap, letting the rage consume her for a short moment. Allows herself to think nothing but disdain for her old friend, one she had used to care for, had shared secrets and interests with her.

Had trusted him with her life, a long time ago.

Just as the thought comes, the glare slowly melts away and falls into an expression of grief. Closing her eyes, Shen lets the tears slip through and warm liquid trickles down her cheeks. The sob is muffled by a trembling hand, shoulders racking with sadness and guilt, mind clouded with the what-ifs. Would things have turned out much differently if she'd chosen Saki over Yoshi? Would she have been happier? Would she even be in New York, pregnant with quadruplets?

Immediately, she feels a stab of guilt; what the hell was she thinking? Of _course_ she would have never chosen Saki over Yoshi. He (had?) cared for her, yes. But he wouldn't have been a good husband to her. Not with how harsh and possessive he'd been when she tested the waters and gone out with him for dinner one night. One night, and that was all it took for her to realize she could only ever love Yoshi. Even if Oroku Saki would have agreed to give up the clan and move to New York with her, he wouldn't have treated her fairly. She knew this back then, and she knows this now, as she silently sobs in her apartment.

"Shen?"

Going rigid, Shen looks up, finding her vision is blurred and Yoshi is standing in front of her. Quickly wiping her eyes, she sniffs, croaking a pathetic, "Hello, Yoshi."

Judging by his expression, it is clear that Yoshi does not buy her weak attempt to conceal her tears, and he's immediately at her side. "Shen," he says again, gentler, eyes softening as he brings a hand up to caress her cheek. "What troubles you, my love?"

Ashamed, Shen averts her eyes, subconsciously leaning into his hand. "It is nothing," she tries to assure him, in a very small voice.

"I can see the tears in your eyes," he says, briefly glancing at the lasagna mess on the wall. "What's wrong?"

Biting her bottom lip, Shen sighs through her nose, fists clenching and unclenching in her lap. "It's Miwa," she says at last.

Surprise flickers across Yoshi's face, brows knitting together. "What about Miwa?" he asks, not unkindly.

Guilt bleeds into her voice as she explains, refusing to meet his eyes. "I keep forgetting that I am not pregnant with her," she admits, nails digging into the tops of her thighs. "And I keep having memories of being pregnant with her. And I feel horrible about being disappointed and sad when I remember that I am pregnant with four little other babies, not her. But I cannot help it, Yoshi. I just...I miss her so much. And I try and try to remember that I need to move on and accept that she's gone, and I think I do, sometimes. But now with this pregnancy, it's all coming back to me now."

The words had rushed out faster and harder than a waterfall, unable to be contained anymore as Shen feels like she's admitting to some kind of heinous crime.

Yoshi lets her continue her venting while rubbing her back in soothingly circles. As she cries and expresses her guilt, he bites the inside of his cheek and quietly admits, "I feel sad, too."

She looks up in surprise, and at her questioning look, he explains, "I am happy that we will be welcoming four new lives into this world, but I am also sad we cannot share this joyous occasion with Miwa. Or learn what kind of big sister she could have been. It's a harsh reality we must face, Shen, and I honestly wish these circumstances were different. But we have dealt with the cards the universe threw at us, and now we must deal with them with patience and understanding."

Shen nods numbly, sniffling. She lifts a hand to wipe her tears, closing her eyes. "I just wish we didn't have to mourn who Miwa could have been," she whispers hoarsely.

Yoshi frowns, quiet and solemn, and nods. "I wish for that too."

In the privacy of their own living room, they sit together in silence, and hold each other as they allow themselves to once again mourn the daughter they will always love.

In Shen's mind, she likes to think Miwa's spirit is smiling.

* * *

Eight months pregnant, Shen walks in the heavy downpour as people rush past her and take refuge in their own homes. She adjusts her grip on the umbrella to protect herself from the rain, briskly crossing the streets to her destination.

Keeping the bag slung over shoulder secure, Shen heads down a familiar path that leads her into a park she grown comfortable in. It was one of the few places that had a sakura tree that reminded her of home, and she'd taken up the routine of coming down here after work to relax and read old novels.

This time she has come here for a purpose, if the lump underneath her bag was any indication. Once she finds the pink petals adorning the branches, she quickly strides towards it and kneels in front of it. Ignoring the slight ache in her back, Shen reaches into the bag and pulls out a silver urn.

When the firefighters had recovered several Miwa's remains, they had let her gather the ashes into an urn she'd never thought she'd use. At the time, she couldn't bear to look at it, fearful of seeing flashes of her precious child; but it had the potential of giving her closure, should she ever wish to release the ashes.

Twisting the lid off, Shen is met with the woody scent of her firstborn's remains, but refrains from tearing up or gagging. Instead she shuts her eyes and a small smile slips across her lips. Tears brim her lashes, but she keeps them from slipping down her cheeks as she opens her shiny eyes. Vaguely aware of the faint sound of thunder rolling across the skies, she speaks, voice low and steady.

"Hello, Miwa," she whispers, drowned out by the rapidly falling rain. "I apologize for the weather, but I need to do this before I lost my nerve."

Letting out a shaky sigh, she lifts her solemn gaze to the sakura tree that towers over her. The soft pink petals pull with the gentle wind, glistening with raindrops. She smiles softly, letting some rain sprinkle on her face.

Looking back down at the urn, she finally manages to say, "A year ago, our lives changed forver," she begins. "Yoshi lost his brother, and as a result, we lost a dear friend and you. And I will forever mourn you, everyday as I breathe, but I cannot consume myself in my grief. You deserved a mother who stays strong in the face of trial and tragedies. And your father needs a wife whose strength parallels his."

As she speaks, steadiness and truth bleeds into her tone, ringing with certainty and strength.

"Your little siblings are going to need a strong mother," she continues, her tone wavering just a tiny bit. "If I continue down the path of spiraling in my sadness, I won't be much of a good mother to them."

She runs a thin finger over the rim of the urn, letting out another wet sigh.

"God, I didn't know I could miss someone this much," she says, her voice heavy with emotion. "You were just this little thing that grew inside me. An extension of myself and your father. You were our entire world, and now you're just—gone. And it hurts, so much, but it's no longer this overpowering pain as it was a year ago, that night. And I can sleep better at night, knowing that your spirit is at peace, and that soon I will gift the world four new lives."

She smiles down at ashes, lifting the urn just slightly from her lap. "I can focus on the friends I have in the present," she says, a light in her eyes that had been absent since the fire. "I learned now I can still love you and let you go. I know that now."

Giving the urn one last kiss, she gently turns it upside down and slowly the ashes pour down on the grounds of the tree. They fall down gracefully, like how the petals drift down from the branches.

Above, the rain becomes lighter, and the dark grey clouds part. A ray of yellow light bursts through the crack, and the tension in Shen's shoulders melts away.

Opening her eyes, she whispers, "I love you, Miwa."

That's when her water breaks.

* * *

"Beautiful boys, are they not?" Shen later says at the hospital, in a wheelchair. The birth had taken a toll on her back, specifically the scars Saki gave her. So while she may have not liked it, it was a little difficult in moving around after the quads were born.

She smiles widely, watching her four children lay in their beds for the night. To her pleasant surprise, all four of them were. It was a blessing in disguise; while it no longer hurt so much to be reminded of Miwa, she would have felt a bit uncomfortable using some of her old clothes on a new baby girl.

Yoshi chuckles, stroking the beard he'd grown months ago, gazing down at them. "Indeed," he agrees. "They look as bright as the stars shining in the universe."

The four boys, for their part, are mostly asleep, but the two managed to find some distinct differences in them. The first one had deep blue eyes, the second had bright green eyes that seemed almost electric. Shen guessed it must have come from her side of the family; her grandfather had had blue eyes and her father had green eyes, though not as bright as those.

To her pleasant surprise, the third one had intelligent red-brown eyes, and the last one had adorable baby blues with freckles adorning his cheeks. She recognised the third one must have inherited Yoshi's eye color, though she wasn't sure if freckles were from his side or hers.

Shaking out of her inner thoughts, she settles on gazing down at them all lovingly. "We should probably name them soon," she mumbles, more of an afterthought.

Yoshi makes a quiet "hm" and cups Blue Eyes cheek, smiling softly at him. The infant stirs, though he does not awake. "Well, you are their mother," he says. "It is your honor to name our sons."

"You were always much better at naming things than me," Shen giggles, leaning down to kiss Freckles nose and straighten Green Eyes blanket. "Come now, surprise me. What shall we call these four little ones?"

"Hmm, let us see now," Yoshi hums, staring down thoughtfully at his four sons. Funnily enough, he did have four names in mind for these little ones; he had been tempted to name Miwa after one of his favorite paintings from the renaissance period. And the painting _was_ made by one of his favorite artists in that era.

"Let's name them...Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo."

As he announces each name, he points to the infant in front of them, smiling as he did so.

"After the four renaissance artists..." Shen muses quietly to herself. An amused glint appears in her dark eyes, a grin pulling at her lips. "I love it."

The boys seem to agree, judging by their stirring and all of them opening their eyes.

Shen gushes over how adorable they are, while Yoshi fondly watches them interact. While it was certainly not going to be easy, raising four boys, he was confident that they could raise them to be well refined, respectful, and honorable young men. That and with the meek hope they won't end up being rambunctious with each other. He was sure they could handle all that came with raising four boys with strikingly different personalities....

At least, he hopes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, thank you guys for the flood of comments and kudos. It has been a huge honor to me.
> 
> That said, this is the final mini arc for Splinter and Tang Shen adjusting to their new lives in America. Next chapter will finally feature more mobile quads. It's most likely going to be a long chapter, so make sure you've got some snacks prepared, XD.
> 
> Again, reviews are writer's chow!


	4. Me, Myself, and I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Somewhere over the rainbow, blue birds fly..." —The Wizard of Oz (1939)
> 
> Tang Shen and Hamato Yoshi have been accustomed to their new lives in New York City, where they now raise their four sons. Although, raising four children with drastically different personalities can often give them a headache.
> 
> Meanwhile, Karai lives in Japan and trains to be a kunoichi, while Shini trains to be a witch. Her friends believes in soulmates, and believes Karai has a snake to her tortoise. But Karai rolls her eyes and scoffs, believing she was destined to be on her own forever.

"How was school—why are you covered in mud?" Tang Shen frowns as a mud soaked Raphael stomps past her.

"Girls are crazy!" he yells, throwing his hands up.

Brows furrowing, Shen glances at Donatello, who's already seated on the couch with a laptop, she asks, "Did something happen at school, Donatello?"

Donnie, who doesn't look up from the screen, shrugs. "Some girls at school pushed him into some mud pit," he explains, typing furiously.

"Ah," Shen says in understanding, chuckling under her breath; she felt bad, of course. But she couldn't help but be reminded of when she and Mei had managed to trick Yoshi and some schoolmates into falling in a duck pond.

Leaving Donatello in the living room, Shen quietly walks into the kitchen, opening the fridge to prepare a snack. Pulling out fresh fruits from the fridge, she prepares a fruit salad with a tall glass of berry juice.

In the background, there's the soft tune of a familiar melody she had used to listen to when she was young. Humming under her breath, she muses to herself how life had changed these last seven years.

Shortly after the boys were born, Yoshi had discovered a long abandoned playground behind several bushes outside his dojo. It was big enough to build a traditional Japanese house, a Minka. Unlike their burned down house in Japan, it was one story instead. But it was big enough for the seven of them, and Yoshi had been ecstatic to grow a large tree in the family dojo.

Speaking of the dojo, she hears the faint grunts coming from it. Most likely Leonardo. Out of all their sons, their first quad was Yoshi's most driven student. He possessed great skill for his family's art, and was the most dedicated and loyal to the Hamato Clan. 

Like father, like son.

Of course it worries her at times, especially when Leonardo trained far more than necessary. Not even Yoshi trained all night long at that age. She would probably have to speak to Yoshi about this.

"Donatello," she calls, "are you hungry? I've prepared a fruit salad for you boys."

"That would be lovely, Mother," Donatello says absently, eyes still glued to the screen. 

Smiling in warm exasperation, Shen rolls her eyes good-naturedly and prepares one plate. "And what is so interesting on that device of yours that is more important to your dear old Mother?" she teases, setting the plate, and takes a peek at the screen.

"Quantum physics," Donnie says, the screen filled with a bunch of paragraphs and several articles on the subject. "And perhaps several commentaries on String Theory."

At that, Shen couldn't help but smile; within a month after the boys were born, she noticed that the third child had been the most observant. Oftentimes Yoshi found Donatello staring at the flashlight, turning it off and on with a thoughtful look on his face. It became much clearer when the boys entered preschool and Donatello had already knew his ABCs and could count to two hundred and twelve so effortlessly in front of the class.

It was no secret he possessed such great intellect, and clearly the most focused and gifted of his brothers. It served him well in training, though Yoshi said he often thought too much during sparring sessions.

Because of his high intelligence, one of the guidance counselors had suggested he was moved up to a grade above.

"Isn't a little early to be learning a subject advanced as this?" Shen asks amusedly. His answer only comes in the form of a half shrug, his attention all on the screen. Shaking her head, Shen wanders back into the kitchen and grabs a plate for Raphael.

"Mommy! Mommy!" sweet Michelangelo yells, bounding into kitchen. 

Smiling in amusement, Shen reaches down and ruffles his mop of curly black hair. "Yes, Michelangelo?"

"Can I have a huge pizza cake for my birthday?" he asks all in one breath; Shen wonders how he can speak so fast without passing out. Her eyes crinkle in fondness as he widens his eyes appealing to appear more angelic. _"Pleeeeeease?"_

Unable to say no to those eyes (she wasn't the only one. It was both hers and Leonardo's weakness), she nods. "Alright. I'll see what I can do. Now eat your fruits. Dinner will be ready tonight and I expect you to behave _and_ eat your vegetables."

He nods so fast that she wonders if he listened, but instead hands him his plate and he sprints out of the room again. Giggling, she rises to full height. "Raphael," she calls. "Can you please come and take your lunch? I made you fruit salad with berry juice."

"Do I have to?" she hears him call, voice dripping with a cranky whine.

 _"Hamato Raphael,"_ she reverts to her mother tongue, _"if you do not step out of your room this instant—"_

Immediately, his door swings open and a still mud soaked Raphael is practically bolting out of his room. He hurriedly takes the plate and cup from her outstretched hands and bows at the waist. _"Thankyoumother,"_ he says without pausing, before speeding back to his room.

Back in the living room, Donatello snorts.

Satisfied, Shen takes the fourth plate and cup, approaching the dojo in the far corner of the house.

It's a rather big, spacious dojo. Filled with weapons racks, a shrine for Miwa and their old life sitting on some shelves, and traditional Japanese paintings. Plus a vent above the tall tree Yoshi had grown and tended to over the years. The lights that seeped through the cracks gave the leaves a shimmering effect and sometimes they saw serene blue rays shining down on them. Leonardo in particular loved the mood it set.

Speaking of the blue eyed boy, Shen spots him sitting on his knees, in front of Miwa's shrine. Creeping closer, she finds that he's holding her teddy bear, his thumb and forefinger absently stroking the red ribbon around its neck.

"Leonardo?" she says, lowering down to sit beside him, setting aside his drink and food.

At first, her son doesn't answer, merely staring at plush with a contemplative look in his eyes.

Frowning in concern, Shen gently places her hand on his shoulder. "My son?"

His spine straightens. Blinking out of a daze, his eyes dart to her, as if noticing her for the first time, and he quickly plasters a small smile. "Yes, Mother?"

"Is something the matter?" she asks, cocking her head to the side.

"No, Mother," Leo shakes his head. "I was just...training."

It was clearly a lie; while she didn't doubt he was training on several new katas Yoshi had taught him, she hasn't heard anything from the dojo for sometime now. But Leonardo was one of the most stubborn of her sons, second to Raphael, and it was usually Yoshi who could pull the truth out of him.

Instead of calling him out, she nods. "Why are you holding Miwa's bear?" she wonders.

He makes a noncommittal sound and there's the slightest lift of his shoulders. Shen's brows pull together in worry, and she opens her mouth to press on, because clearly something was amiss with Leonardo, but then she hears a crash outside. The sound is followed by Michelangelo's protests and Raphael's angry grunts. No doubt that her youngest was probably pulling another one of his tricks on her second eldest son.

Sighing, Shen kisses the top of Leonardo's head and quickly retreats back to the living room.

She doesn't see the fresh blood stain on Miwa's bear.

* * *

 _"Dude,"_ a boy whispers, "you didn't tell me your mother was a total babe."

"Wha—she's not— _why?"_ comes Raph's indignant reply.

"Just tellin' it like it is, dude," Casey Jones shrugs. "Your mom? Total hottie."

Rolling his eyes, Leonardo passes the two hotheads and disappears behind some of the more elaborate decorations. For their birthday, their parents had allowed them individual spaces for their respective guests.

Each had their separate decorations of their preferred interests; Donnie's mostly consisted of science and technology theme, Raph's were loud metal bands, and Mikey's were a clash of rodeos and circus. Speaking of which, Leo's brows raise when he sees two men hauling out a literal elephant, much to Mikey's delight. Judging by Mother's exasperated sigh and Father pinching the bridge of his nose, he can only come to one conclusion: Aunt Mei.

Chuckling under his breath, Leo escapes the large creature and ducks into his own section of the party. For him, he'd wanted a space theme with a splash of his Japanese heritage. Part of him longs to visit his parent's homeland, but for some reason, they were strictly against the six of them going to Japan. Why, Leo didn't know, though it might have something to do with his deceased older sister, Miwa.

Shaking those thoughts away, he takes a seat on a bench, a life size statue of Captain Ryan right next to him. Normally, he'd feel more excited; after all, he loved Space Heroes. It was his favorite cartoon, despite his younger brother's teasing, and he hoped to one day grow up to be as brave and mighty as his hero. But currently? He didn't feel like reciting his favorite lines.

Watching his brothers play with their own friends, he couldn't help but feel dejected. This was probably his own fault. He spent so much time training and perfecting his craft, that he hardly made any time for friends at school. Not even at the dojo did he have anyone to strike up a conversation with.

Disheartened, he rises from his seat, with the intention to quietly retreat to his bedroom and brood. It would be in the safely of his own bedroom, so at least Raph wouldn't be able to make fun of him.

He's almost at the patio door when a heavy hand lands on his shoulder, halting him in his tracks. Eyes widening with surprise, the blue-eyed boy looks up to meet his father's warm crimson eyes. Master Splinter peers down at him with a questioning gaze, tilting his head to the side.

"Leonardo?" Father says, his lips tugging down. "Why are you leaving so soon, my son? Do you not want to wait for your friends?"

Leo swallows thickly, a light coat of pink dusting his cheeks. His ears warmed in embarrassment. He'd hoped to evade the inevitable conversation with his parents, dreading to explain to them why he never had any 'friends' over. He wasn't exactly ashamed of being friendless; he was friendly with the kids at school, even if some of them thought he was a geeky stick in the mud dork. But he wasn't antisocial.

Some things were just more important than others.

"Uh," Leo begins gracelessly, wincing at the slight crack in his voice. Damn puberty. "Well—"

**_"HEY EVERYONE!"_** shouts Mikey, who is waving his arms in an erratic fashion, beaming wide and proud. "Look at the new trick I learned!"

His foot stomps on one end of his skateboard, flipping it over several times, and then hops on it. Ignoring Shen's protests, he speeds past the guests and straight for the huge elephant's back.

"Michelangelo!" Shen shrieks, rushing after him, followed by several of the parents to stop whatever nonsense Mikey's planned. Or not planned. Honestly, it was hard to tell sometimes.

Father darts past him, yelling Mikey's name, and Leo's shoulders sag in relief, disappearing into the house.

As his parents shout Mikey's name and there's a whole chaotic mess that his little brother makes, Leo ignores the hot sting of tears welling in his eyes. Ignores how skin flushes with humiliation as he watches his brother's friends surround Mikey's mess. And focuses on the palpable relief he feels once the door to his bedroom shuts and the noises outside cuts off.

Leaning against the door, his shoulders sag and his muscles go limp, closing his eyes tightly and his head begins to pound. There's nothing in his red lotus scented room that can hurt him here. The promise of safety takes place in his Space Heroes blankets, staring at the glowing stars glued to his ceiling, he feels safe and comforted.

Maybe, he thinks as he stares distantly at the stars, there's someone he can share this safe place with.

Somewhere...

* * *

In another part of the world, two girls sit under an umbrella stand, eating a stale sandwiches and lukewarm glasses of water.

"A tiger?" a girl with amber says, arching a brow.

"Rumor has it that some tourists were devoured alive by this creature," the girl sitting across from her eyes, grinning wildly.

"According to them, this beast is apparently half man."

"Right, because tourists are reliable sources," Oroku Karai snorts, rolling her eyes. "Shini, it's a rumor for a reason. They probably just saw some big animal standing up and thought it was half human."

Shinigami shrugs, grin glued to her lips. "Hey, it's a fascinating tale. Maybe we should take a trip down there."

"Tempting as that is," Karai dips her untouched sandwich into her glass of water. She takes a bite, immediately hit with the odd, moist feeling of the bread smushes on the roof of her mouth. She swallows down her disgust and says, "I'd rather not spend my time hunting for some half beast thing that probably doesn't exist. That, and I have training."

Shini visibly deflates, pouting like a petulant five-year-old. Karai smothers a smirk at the thought. It's not exactly inaccurate.

"You're no fun," Shini whines, drawing out the word 'fun'. "Why can't we ever do more cool stuff? I have needs, Senpai."

"What are you talking about?" Karai raises a brow. "We just burned down a school bathroom yesterday. What can be cooler than that?"

"We can burn down a classroom—"

"—no—"

"—a bus?"

"No, Shini."

"Let's burn down a building."

Karai pauses at that, tilting her head in thought. "...no," she finally decides, though there isn't much conviction behind it.  
Shini grins widely, satisfied as she leans back in her chair. "If we're lucky, we'll have the whole year off."

"True," Karai says. "But then my father would force me into homeschool."  
"Would he really?" Shini asks, raising an eyebrow. "I thought he'd see it as an opportunity for you to train harder and hone in your craft?"

"It won't do me good if I can't run a business," Karai counters, a finger pointing up. "Father says there's a lot more to becoming heir of the clan than just being one of the most skilled kunoichi."

"Bummer," Shini says, clicking her tongue.  
Karai concurred; sometimes it felt like the business side of the clan was unnecessary, and she was smart enough to navigate it on the fly. Besides, even if she couldn't, she could always scare some poor whump into doing it for her. But she would dare question her father on it, not unless the mood strikes her or if she was bored.

"Come on. This place is depressing," she says at last, pushing her plate away and standing from her chair. "Let's go do something more fun."

"We can go rob a bank," Shini suggests with a mischievous smile, flashing her pearly whites.

"I was thinking of something more...ill-advised," Karai flashes her infamous smirk, holding up a card between her slim fingers.

"After all, what good would it be to waste my father's stolen credit card?"

The witch-in-training practically leaps in joy, giggling cheerfully. "You're diabolical."

Karai's only response is a little shrug, and soon enough, they take the train down to an old city she heard of, but never visited.  
In all their travels, not once did Father ever take her to Kyoto, a city in Japan. According to her history lessons, it was considered the heart of Japan, having once been the capital many years ago. Back when she'd been curious, she browsed through the internet to look at the photos and discovered a link about the tales of Genbu.

"A lot of red flowers," Shini observes, ripping one from the bush and taking a sniff, before uncaringly tossing it into a trash bin.

Rolling her eyes at her friend's antics, Karai simply decides to give several of the buildings a once over. It was actually quite nice, and she can spot a few historical landmarks she had learned about in history class. She spots the Kiyomiza-dera, finding it surrounded by beautiful, bright red flowers, the inside alight with golden lights.

"Oo!" Shini perks up, a smile rapidly spreading. "Gift shop!"

As she bounds towards the shop like a little kid would to a candy store, Karai follows like the parent being dragged into said store.

The store is about the size of a cottage she'd seen back in the woods, during her first week of training. It smells like cinnamon and chocolate chip cookies, and the colors seemed to match, dark browns with rich crimson red floors.

Shini already disappears around the corner, browsing through heart-shaped necklaces and decorated mugs. Karai walks around and looks over at some of the items they have. Clothes with weird slogans on hangers, trinkets like figurines and music boxes, and even some candy bars and soft drinks in the back.

Something glints in the corner of her eye, piquing her interest. Turning, her brows raise when she finds an odd sculpture. It was strangely familiar; a tortoise with a snake wounded around its body, forked tongue sticking out. Walking closer to it, she's struck with realization. It was a depiction of Genbu, one of the ancient spirits that was rumored to save this city centuries ago. Karai didn't really know if she believed in the legend, but for some reason Shini did, and she believed they were soul mates destined to be partners forever, romantic or platonic.

“Do you think the tale is true?” Shini asks, magically appearing from behind her, peeking over Karai’s shoulder. She almost jumps, turning her head halfway to give her dear, wonderful friend the stink eye, before rolling them.

"Hm,” she hums, glancing down at the price tag; it’s a little on the expensive side, but hey, Daddy’s credit card could buy her a whole village if she really wanted one. And it’s not like Father would notice, not with all his villainous monologues about vendettas and honor. “Looks like it would make a good placement for my fireplace.”

“Right next to the skull of your first kill?” 

Karai flashes her a wicked little smirk, mischief sparkling in her amber orbs. “You know me so well.” She picks up the sculpture and looks it over, making sure it’s in good condition. Nodding once, she makes her way over to the cash register and pulls out her father’s credit card just as Shinigami dumps all her goodies and trinkets on the counter.

The woman behind the register merely blinks slowly, her expression the perfect portrait of being done with life, and mindlessly she scans the items and deadpans the price.  
Once they’re done, both girls head out of the shop and easily blend into midafternoon traffic.

“You didn’t answer my question before,” Shini says, turning her head to Karai. “Do you believe the tale is true?”

“That Genbu saved Kyoto and its inhabitants from harm?” Karai arches a brow. “I don’t know.”

She honestly didn’t; after meeting Shinigami and watching her turn into a cat, she’d been less skeptic of the mystic arts and even magic. What was that phrase? Magic is just a science you don’t understand yet?

But Shini shakes her head and says, “I meant the legend that the tortoise and snakes are soul mates destined to be intertwined forever?”

Karai pauses at that, raising her brows. “I’ve heard of them being soulmates, yeah,” she says carefully, frowning at Shini’s penetrating eyes, a slow, knowing smile playing across her lips.

“You think you’ll ever meet yours?”  
Karai snorts, shaking her head. “I don’t think soulmates really exist, Shini.”

But her friend shrugs one shoulder, looking irritatingly smug, like she knew an answer Karai didn’t. “You never know,” she says, leaning in and whispering, “Maybe one day you might just meet your tortoise.”

With those parting words, Karai watches, dumbstruck, as her friends skips away, fingers crossed behind her back.

Her dumbstruck face falls into annoyance, rolling her eyes with a scoff. Yeah, right. As if she would be even interested in pursuing a relationship with some guy or girl. Hard pass. She knew who she was and knew what she wanted. And a relationship didn't fit into her life. Maybe future hookups, but a relationship? With feelings and heart eyes? Gross.

Besides, Karai was pretty sure she was destined to be alone.

And she's okay with that, she really is.

So why does it sting so much?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm not entirely happy with this chapter, but this was all I could come up with to head into Chapter 5 and create basis for context in later chapters.
> 
> And apologies for this chapter being extremely late and overdue. My dog was attacked during August and I lost the drive to write anything. He's better now, practically back to normal. And recently I entered into a writing competition for Young Arts, then there was the start of school and schoolwork, looking for colleges, etc. But today was a free day and I thought about finishing the rest of the chapter.
> 
> Now as for Chapter 5, I already have a few ideas in mind for it. It would be around the first episode of the first series, with a few minor tweaks and Karai's perspective as she prepares for her trip to New York. Hopefully I'll have it finished before the end of November. No promises, though, but please stay tuned and feedback is appreciated.


	5. Let's Start Living Dangerously

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Nothing is so painful to the human mind as a great and sudden change." ―Mary Shelley, Frankenstein (1818)
> 
> It's the start of a new chapter for April O'Neil and the Hamato Family, and it's sure to be an interesting read.
> 
> Meanwhile, a news report catches the eye of an old friend, and Karai lives a lie that's soon to be unveiled...

She stares blankly at her glass of water, hands wrapped around the cup. Her knuckles pale and her palms turn pink by how tight she's gripping the glass, and how ice-cold it is. Letting it wash down her parched throat is barely registered, but it's a brief relief for the numbness that settles over her.

April O'Neil lives the normal life, mostly. She grew up in a relatively normal apartment, with her father the psychologist, and she went to decent schools with good education. She moved to rural area of New York shortly after her mother mysteriously vanished and her father rushed her down to the city. It took her time to adjust to her new surroundings; instead of waking up to the sound of blue jays chirping and hens squawking, she woke up to the blare of sirens and car horns honking. It was...a lot, to be honest. But April had been six and she adjusted pretty fast to the city. While she missed the farm (she still does, even after all this time), she learned to love the city, and at least she made a few friends, like Irma.

But tonight?

Tonight hasn't been normal. Not since her and her dad took their daily nighttime stroll.

Even now she's still not sure how it all happened, or how fast it had all happened. One moment she's walking beside her father, thinking of what to write for her English assignment on paranormal and sci-fi literature, then the next a bunch of business suited men with odd-looking guns charge towards them in purposeful and threatening strides. Even stranger was that a bunch of colorful-masked ninjas jumped in and tried to save them.

So yeah, tonight has been _weird._

"Can I offer you some tea?" a kind, beautiful Japanese woman in lavender scrubs asks, holding up a steaming mug of the beverage. April attempts a small smile and shakes her head no, muttering her appreciation.

The... _ninjas_ had taken her down here to tend to some minor injuries she got from those weird, alien brain robots earlier. Her knee had taken a nasty scrape when she'd tripped on the asphalt, and the palms of her hands had been skinned when she scooted away from the purple masked ninja.

The purple masked ninja who's in her advanced chemistry class.

The Hamato Quadruplets Brothers were hard to not notice at Roosevelt high school. It was kind of hard to ignore the fact that there were quadruplets in the first place, and none of them were in the slightest bit identical aside from their last names, parents, and home.

Donatello, or Donnie, she vaguely knows. She'd gone to his and his brother's birthday party a few years ago. He was classified as the genius of the four, and unlike his brothers who were freshmen, Donnie was advanced to one grade level back in kindergarten, and now he's sophomore along with her. Their conversations were limited to pleasant hello's and goodbye's, and looking back to those few hours ago, he was actually pretty cute. Lean, svelte frame, handsome mahogany eyes, a gap between his front teeth, and neatly styled black hair. Contrary to nerds or geeks in film and television, he didn't wear any nerdy glasses and bullies often steered away from him and his brothers, courtesy of the "angry one."

Raphael, the one Irma had said was "cool, but rude," was the second oldest. April saw him a few times in the halls and her electives, like gym and woodshop, both that Raph seems to excel at. He was the one with the short fuse and the most muscles, often recognized by his crass language, electric green eyes, and spiky black hair dyed red at the tips and lightning bolt-shaped scar above his right eyebrow. He was the red masked one.

Michelangelo she's seen around the school most, if only because he and his friend Jason skated throughout the halls, despite the teacher's warnings and the student's protests. But April thought it was funny, plus it looked fun! The youngest of the bunch had the most expressive face, with his wide sky-blue eyes and freckles dotted across his cheeks, similarly to hers. And she could catch him in the halls by his signature mop of curly black hair and wide, go-getting smile. Earlier she'd seen him with an orange mask.

As for the oldest of the quads, he was the most elusive. She knows his name is Leonardo and he has short black hair and ocean blue eyes. For some reason he wore wraps around his arms, the same he wore tonight when they had rescued her, and she saw him with the blue mask.

They were an interesting bunch, so to speak. And apparently wear black ninja garb with hoods and masks to conceal their faces.

She's sucked back into the present when a plate slides into her vision. On it sits a clean slice of cake. Brows furrowing, she looks up to the same Japanese woman who'd had given her the water and offered her some tea.

The woman smiles warmly, lifting the handleless mug to her lips. "It's the boy's fifteenth birthday," she explains, answering April's unspoken question. "Our youngest baked the cake. Thankfully I was there to make sure he didn't try to add pepperoni or jalapenos like he did for the cupcakes at last month's cake sale."

April winces, stifling a chuckle; that had been a _disaster._ About forty kids had to be taken to the ER and Poison Control had been called. It was safe to say the Hamato's weren't allowed to provide any foods or treats at future school functions.

A shame really, she thinks as she tries a piece. This cake was _delicious._

A comfortable silence sits between them, even with the nerves running through April's insides. She feels she should say something, but what? She hardly knows the four brothers well, aside from maybe Donnie, and her mind is still reeling from the events that happened tonight. Not to mention her dad...

God, what happened to him? The last she saw him was on that helicopter before she fell, and Donnie caught her. She had been panting from the sheer panic clouding her mind, before it exploded into mind-numbing worry as she watched the helicopter fly away in the starry night.

_Dad..._

She hopes he's okay. That he's alive and well. And now there's the issue of where she had to live. Maybe her aunt Agatha. She ran the Second Time Around shop and owned an apartment upstairs above it. It was nice enough and the spare bedroom she had would give April some space for a bed, her desk, and other essentials. She's sure her aunt would love to have her; she and her dad got along, after all.

The woman seems to be having similar thoughts, as she sets her mug down and looks at April. "Do you have someone to stay with you tonight?" she asks.

Aprils shrugs one shoulder. "My aunt," she replies, taking another bite of the cake, followed by a gulp of the water. "Her apartment is a little far from my school, but the traffic isn't so bad and a couple of classmates that live by go on the bus. So..." she trails off awkwardly, unsure what to add.

The woman (she really should ask for her name soon) nods. "Well, that's a relief. I would have considered allowing you to live here, but sadly we do not have much room in the spare bedroom we have, and it is filled with some of the boy's old things."

"It's fine, really," April assures with a wave of her hand. "I wouldn't want to impose. Your sons have already done so much. I just wish my dad could have been lucky..."

Her face takes a crestfallen look, staring into the clear liquid of her drink. The lights above them reflect on the water, and she can see the sorrow pooled in her own blue eyes.

Smiling sympathetically, the woman reaches out her hand and takes April's, squeezing it gently. "For what it is worth, my sons are determined to save your father and return him safely to you."

"I hope so," April says quietly, lifting her eyes. "If I'm being completely honest, tonight has been so...overwhelming. My dad and I being taken, four boys who go to my school are ninjas, alien robot brains..."

"Ah, so what my youngest son said is true," the woman mutters, a slight chuckle in her tone. She quickly covers it up with a cough and addresses the young girl. "I can see how tonight has been chaotic for you, and I offer my sincerest condolences. I know what it's like to lose someone you love."

"You do?" April says, her finger running through the rim of the plate, the slice of cake completely devoured. Sadness really made her hungry.

She sighs, looking momentarily crestfallen, and for a split-second April could feel the sudden shift in the woman's emotions. The deep seeded emotions shown in her dark eyes. "Before we moved here and I gave birth to our sons, we lost our daughter, Miwa," she reveals, eliciting a quiet gasp from April. "It was a house fire, and the smoke inhalation must have killed her before the flames did, but seeing her remains...we were lost without her."

"Oh my god," April whispers, face bloodless and her eyes horrified. "That's awful. I'm so sorry, my condolences, Mrs. Hamato."

"You can call me Tang Shen," the woman – Tang Shen chuckles lightly, but the sadness in her eyes doesn't leave. "While the pain has never stopped, it does not consume me or my husband anymore. After all, we have our sons to be grateful for, and I couldn't have asked for anything better."

April nods, and she can't help but admire the woman for her resilience. She can't imagine the heartbreak one would feel losing their child, but guiltily it assuages April's own misery of losing her father. After all, this wasn't permanent, at least she hopes it won't be, and right now she's sure he's alive.

He _has_ to be. Obviously these aliens' guys needed him for something, and they couldn't extract anything from him if he's dead.

...Right?

Before Tang Shen or April could say more, there was the distinct sound of a screen door sliding open, and four boys clad in their ninja garb step out. The hoods are down and their masks hang off their necks like a scarf. The last to step out is a broad-shouldered, towering Japanese man with dark hair and a beard, dressed in a classic deep crimson kimono with an interesting crest on the back. His hands are folded behind his back and his expression is inscrutable when he looks at the redhead.

April gulps.

"Happy birthday," says April lamely, and she nearly cringes at her tone.

Mikey smiles brightly at her and gives a good-natured thumbs-up, while Donnie smiles shyly at her, Leo nods once, and Raph grunts, his thick muscled arms crossed.

"Is everything alright, my love?" Shen says, pasting on a sweet, loving smile, but beneath her eyes underlies a warning, soundlessly reminding him there was a distraught guest in their home.

Hamato Yoshi sighs through his nose, nodding once. "The boys have informed me of the threat these...Kraang possess and one of their leads apparently turned into some...plant monster."

"Kraang?" April makes a face.

"That's what they call themselves," explains Donnie. "From the evidence I gathered at their base, they seem to have this chemical substance they call mutagen, and it transforms people into monsters when they come into contact with it. One of their drivers, Snake..."

"Turned into this totally rad plant mutant weed!" Mikey finishes, with the enthusiasm of a five-year-old, pumping his fist up in the air. "I mean, the dude was upset and all he wasn't human anymore, and he sorta blames us for his mutation..."

"Which was hardly our fault," Raph grumbles, rolling his eyes as he swats Mikey's head.

"Anyways," Donnie says with an emphasis, shooting the two a glare, "Father has agreed to let us go out more and track down the jerks who took your dad. The police won't believe us and probably put us in some asylum, and we can't bring attention ourselves for...reasons."

April smiles brightly at that, eyes lighting up with the relief that her father would be returned to her someday. "Thank you," she says, the gratitude bleeding into her tone as she smiles at them with appreciation. "Thank you so much!"

Pink dusts across Donnie's cheeks, but he smiles warmly at her and his eyes soften. "It's our pleasure."

A clap pulls them back to reality, and April glances over at the patriarch of the family. "As...exciting as this night has been," he says, "we should escort Miss O'Neil home. Do you have anyone you can stay with?"

"My aunt," April says immediately. "I can call her and give her a few details, but I can leave out the stuff about aliens and robots. She won't believe it anyway."

Yoshi nods. "That is good to hear. My sons can take you home just in case the strange creatures decide to come back for you."

April nods and slides off her seat, smiling politely as she leads the boys out of the house and to the direction of her aunt's place. She quickly gives her a text with a condensed version of tonight's event, minus the ninjas and robot aliens of course, and asks if she can stay with her in the meantime.

Thankfully, Aunt Aggie agrees to let her stay and adds a heart emoji, which April rolls her eyes fondly at. With that settled, she pockets her phone and lets out a quiet sight, exhaustion sinking into her bones.

"Are you okay?" Donnie asks quietly, soft enough that only April hears. He walks next to her while his brothers linger in the back, Mikey waving his hands around as he speaks animatedly to an irate looking Raph.

April responds with a reassuring smile and nods. "Tonight has been...crazy, but I'm just glad my dad's alive and is going to be getting help."

Donnie grins, revealing his gap tooth, which she found a little cute to be honest. He wasn't a bad looking guy, none of them were, so it came as a surprise to her that they were all single. And...where the hell had that thought come from?

"Well," he continues, bringing her out of her thoughts, "I promise we won't rest until we find him."

"We won't?" Raph mutters to Leo, who elbows him with a chastising glare, which Raph only shrugs at.

"Thank you," April says softly, frowning as she averts her eyes. "Still. I don't feel right dragging you guys into this. It's not your fight."

"Yes, it is," Donnie assures her firmly, tentatively squeezing her shoulder. April looks up and smiles again, to which he turns scarlet at as he pulls his hand back with a nervous, bashful chuckle.

Behind them, Leo falters in his stride when he hears a 'ding!' from his phone, turning it on and sliding his thumb across the across, turning white as a ghost when he skims over the bold headline of a news app.

"Oh no," he says, catching the attention of April and his brothers.

"Is everything okay?" April asks, frowning in concern.

Leo slowly looks up from his phone and briefly looks over at their concerned looks, before he slowly turns his phone over, and for the exception of Mikey and April, they all pale at the headline and the image attached to it.

**_NINJAS IN NEW YORK!_ **

* * *

_"...a_ _report of, get this – Ninjas in New York! Don't believe me? After residents reported a disturbance, the police recovered this!"_

There's the sound static as he gestures for his soldier to hit replay, pausing when the scene shows an image of an eerily familiar shuriken, and his eyes widen a fraction at the symbol engraved on the weapon.

For a moment, when one of his Foot Soldiers reported an American News Channel reporting Ninjas in New York, he'd believed that one of his soldiers back in America rebelled and inadvertently exposed themselves to a civilian or two. Initially if this report turned out true, he would personally travel down in America just to find the scum that dared defy his orders.

Until he sees that symbol...

The crest of the clam that been responsible for the fall and disgrace of the Foot is burned into his corneas like the flames that had burned down his old home, along with his beloved, his former brother and now most hated enemy, and their child... For so long he thought his former friend had perished in those flames with Shen in his arms and Miwa dying from the smoke inhalation. He was sure the fires he had started would ensure his permanent end...

But it appears that he was wrong.

Hamato Yoshi is still alive.

"So," Oroku Saki's gaze sears into the screen, as if the burning anger in his eyes alone would cause the television to crack and spark in any second, "my old enemy is in New York and training his own army." His good eye narrows darkly at the shuriken, the flames of vengeance returning once more into his eyes. "At last, I can finish what I started so long ago." His eyes briefly flicker over to the solider to his right. "Prepare my jet," he orders, and the solider bows before rushing out of the room.

Perched on the arm of his throne is the infamous and most feared helmet of the Foot Clan, the Kuro Kabuto. He picks it up and slides it back onto his head as he slowly rises to full height. The dark purple lights and shadows give his towering frame a haunting, foreboding appearance, and the Shredder's eye steels with cold rage.

"I'm going to visit an old friend."

* * *

In hindsight, Karai should have expected this by now. It's just like her asshat of a father to ruin her night of fun and drinking with Shinigami, while she watches her friend test the limits of dark magic her instructor had warned was a dangerous path to wander into blindly.

Ha. What's the point of dark magic if you can see?

...okay, that doesn't really make sense, but Karai is drunk and she's allowed to have her head all cloudy and muddled, thank you very much.

Currently she slurps on the residue of her margarita, running her tongue across her salty lips, dissolving into a sit of stifled giggles as she tips forward, her straw falling on the floor.

Shini made the _best_ margaritas.

Speaking of the trainee witch, Shinigami lies on the floor, rubbing her arms and legs on the carpet, attempting to make an invisible snow angel. While she's doing that, Karai's phone shrieks with life, and she sighs and pulls the phone from her back pocket.

She has two contacts in her phone, and Shini broke hers when she flung it across the room, thinking it would fly on command.

"Yes, Father?" she musters enough politeness in her tone, careful to make sure she doesn't slur. God forbid her father finds out she's drinking with a friend she knows he wouldn't approve of, if only because the magics or mystic arts made him wary.

 _"Karai."_ Uh-oh. He doesn't sound happy. Had she done something to upset him? He couldn't have possibly found out about those stolen paintings from that museum! She made sure she deleted all the video footage. _"Pack your belongings and meet me at headquarters,_ immediately. _We are living for New York City tonight."_

Wait, _what?_

She jerks up in surprise, brows raising. "What?" she stammers, almost losing her non-drunk composure. "New York? Is there something wrong in New York that we have to go there, Father?"

There's a brief silence hanging between them on the call, and Karai's stomach churns in anxiety, waiting for an answer and trying to keep her cool and calm front.

Finally, there's a reply. But it leaves her going pale as a ghost and her blood running cold.

 _"Hamato_ _Yoshi is alive."_

Hamato Yoshi is alive...

That man...the one who had taken _her_ away...who had _ruined_ all of their lives...

_...was alive..._

She runs her tongue across her lips again, mouth suddenly going dry. "I'll be there tonight," she promises, promptly hanging up.

And then she vomits.

In the background, Shini comes back into awareness, crying out in surprise as Karai regurgitates her lunch and margaritas. **"What the shit?"** she exclaims in Japanese, gawking at Karai.

Karai chokes out the rest of her stomach acid, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. She weakly raises her hand and swallows hard. "Do you remember the name Hamato Yoshi?" she croaks.

Shini stands and approaches her, kneeling beside her as she nods, looking confused. "Yes," she says slowly. "The man that killed your mother when you were a baby, right? What about him?"

"He's alive," Karai says, closing her eyes and pressing a hand to her head, an ache beginning to pound. "And he's in New York. My father wants me to meet him at the Foot headquarters and go to New York with him." No doubt to help him finish off the rat that killed her mother, spineless coward.

Shini nods, brows creasing in worry over her best friend. "I'll help you clear the headache and pack for your trip," she says, putting a hand on Karai's shoulder. "How long do you think you'll be gone?"

"If it's just Hamato, not too long," Karai frowns, running the numbers in her head. From the stories she heard both from Foot Soldiers and her father, Hamato Yoshi was a powerful warrior of their art, and rivaled his father in that regard. The last fight between him and Father had been enough to burn down the Hamato dojo and leave those scars on Father, and now apparently enough to allow Hamato to escape and live out his worthless days in _New York_ of all places.

Taking him down is going to be hard, but if Hamato Yoshi has been out of practice all these years and is alone...then taking him down together would be much easier.

But her father required her to come along as well, and knowing her father, he would want the honor of finishing off Hamato all to himself.

"But my father didn't give me much information, so I have no idea," she says after another moment of thinking. "If it was this urgent, he would have just taken a flight to New York by himself, so the odds aren't looking good."

Shini lets out a heavy sigh, nodding as her features become uncharacteristically grave and mildly disappointed. Karai couldn't blame her; Shini and her have never been apart for more than a month, so having to say goodbye for an uncertain amount of time was going to be hard.

"We can video chat and call," she tries to assure her best friend, because while she's terrible at comforting others and saying thank you, she's not going to leave her hanging like this. "And I can always buy you a plane ticket."

"Or I can sneak into a flight," Shini humors, but her smile doesn't meet her eyes.

"Atta girl," Karai chuckles, patting her back and standing up slowly, albeit shakily.

Shini's eyes light up a little more, though she frowns when she glances down at her now vomited stained carpet. "Can you at least clean up my carpet before you go?"

"Not unless you pay me."

A sigh. "Dammit."

The trip back to her own bedroom is short, courtesy of Karai's agility and speed and Shini riding on her back, and they easily slip into the window.

Her room is largely void of any posters or whatever crap normal teenage girls kept in their bedroom. The walls are a very dead purple with marks Shini's experiments and her tanto blades had left over the years. One king-sized bed, a nightstand, desk, and a chest full of clothes and essentials for trips like these.

She immediately goes towards her nightstand and picks up a torn photo she stares at every night before going to bed, smiling softly at it every time.

It's an old picture of her mother, the beautiful Tang Shen. Dark, full hair down, makeup perfectly done, and she wears a red sweater. She catches a hint of her father's hand on her shoulder, but it doesn't show his face for some reason. She never asked her father why, guessing it might have been torn from the fire or the spineless rat himself. The latter, most likely, since she doesn't see any charred black on the torn edges.

Looking into her mother's dark eyes, Karai tilts her head and frowns. The more she looks at the photo, the less she sees herself in her mother. There was hardly a resemblance between them, though her father explained she got her looks from Tang Shen's mother, Tang Homura.

In the back, Shini quietly grabs her suitcase and unlatches the chest, pulling out handfuls of her clothes and stuffing them into the suitcase.

"Are you gonna bring your vibrator?"

Rolling her eyes skywards, Karai answers in a deadpan, "No," then pauses. "Wait...yeah, put it in. Might as well have some quality me-time in my new room."

Giving the thumbs-up, Shini puts it in along with some underwear and bras. She zips it shut and extends the handle. "All packed."

"That fast?" Karai turns around halfway, arching a brow.

Shini shrugs. "You don't have a lot of stuff," she defends. "And you rarely go out in civilian wear outside Japan."

Okay, that's fair. Karai hated going out into an unfamiliar town in nothing but jeans and a leather jacket. It made her feel exposed and naked without her traditional kunoichi uniform. Plus, she couldn't drop water balloons on unsuspecting heads from the ground.

"Yeah that's fair," she concedes, taking the handle from Shini and tucking the picture safely into her pocket. "I'll call you when I land."

"You better," Shini says as Karai heads out the door. "And send me photos! Oh, and lemme know if you fall in love with a stranger like in those American movies!"

Karai rolls her eyes fondly as she exits the headquarters and meets her father at the very bottom, where they wait for his jet to arrive. Her small smile falls into a firm, blank frown as she meets her father's eye and nods once. He makes a quiet sound at her presence, acknowledging her being there as he turns his attention to a Foot Soldier reporting that the jet should arrive shortly, rough in five minutes.

But his words go deaf to her, thoughts of squeezing, stabbing, or – more preferably – burning the life out of Hamato Yoshi's eyes, to restore her mother's honor and avenge her death filling her head and consuming her thoughts.

Her arms lax on her sides, Karai pushes her suitcase to a waiting Foot Soldier and she follows her father into the jet once it lands, taking her usual seat and clicking on her seatbelt. She pulls out the photo and stares at her mother's alive, smiling face, and her eyes narrow with resolve.

That fucker thought he could get away with killing her mother and flee to another country?

Well, Hamato Yoshi had another thing coming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I focused more on April here to foreshadow what's to come into later chapters. Like her weird telepathy powers and her relationship with Donnie (I'm a huge Apritello fan, don't judge me). Later the chapters will focus more on Leo and his perspective, meeting Karai, struggling with his mental health, his feud with Raph, leading the team, etc.
> 
> Also, I'm trying to avoid writing the entire episodes out, mostly because I don't wanna have to pause every second to copy down a line from the show. So most of the chapters will take place after a certain episode, except for something more specific like New Girl in Town and Alien Agenda. Also there will obviously be canon divergence XD
> 
> And as always, please let me know how you feel about this chapter!


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